Seattle a ‘prototype city of the future’

In case you missed it … The Christian Science Monitor gave a shout-out to Seattle last week, putting it in its list of five cities it expects will thrive in the so-called “New Economy.”

“In some ways, Seattle is the prototype city of the future,” the article gushed. “It embodies in one leafy landscape virtually all of the forces driving the New Economy – exports, an educated workforce, a vibrant high-tech base, a budding green-tech sector, and an enviable lifestyle.”

What are the downsides? “It suffers from notorious traffic, expensive housing, and is legendary for months of aluminum-gray skies,” author Dean Patton wrote. Boeing’s recent decision to built a plant in South Carolina doesn’t help, either.

Boston, Houston, Huntsville, Ala. and Fort Collins, Colo. also made the list as cities to watch.

Seattle was been mainstay of these lists since before the dot-com bubble burst, but has recently has made a comeback. In September, the Wall Street Journal named Seattle and Washington, D.C. the top two hottest destinations for recent college graduates.